We may not encourage judging books by their cover, but you can judge an email by its subject line. And people do! The average person gets 88 emails daily, so it’s no wonder why many marketing emails go unread.

The difference between a read and an unread email almost always boils down to your subject line, so that’s why it takes the crown: your subject is the essential part of your email.

But what makes an email subject good or bad? We’ve put together our top 10 tips. Follow these and get ready for better open rates!

1. Write and test multiple.

When you’re writing subject lines, you’ll often write bad ones before writing anything good. That’s why we recommend creating a list of 5–10 and then picking your most vital players.

The next step is to A/B test them. See which ones get the most opens when you send them to a group from your email list, and there’s your winner. You can do this easily with our email marketing solution. Just select the A/B Test tab under My Campaigns.

2. Keep it short and straightforward.

We recommend keeping your subject line under 40 characters or 5–7 words. People are much more captivated by the short and snappy than the long-winded. Also, if your subject is too long, it will get cut off, especially on mobile – remember that 81% of people prefer checking email on their phones.

3. Use personalization.

Your customers appreciate a personal touch. It makes your marketing email feel less like sales and more like a message from a friend. So use tags in your subject, like your customer’s name, when possible.

4. Tell them what’s inside.

Sure, there can be room for a little mystery regarding email subjects, but in general, your recipients should quickly know what your email is about. Make sure your issue tells them what to expect in your email – and why they’re better off opening it.

5. Create a feeling of exclusivity.

People like feeling special, so let your subject express exclusivity when you can. Your customers will be more interested in a “just for them” offer rather than a generic marketing message to the masses.

6. Create a sense of urgency.

A deadline could be the push someone needs to open an email. If possible, let your recipient know that your offer ends on such-and-such a date or that it’s the last day for them to take advantage of an offer.

7. Try a question.

An excellent way to engage your email recipients is to ask questions in your subject line. It helps develop curiosity and engagement. For example, “Are you missing out on … ?” or “Did you know … ?” can be great jumping-off points to making a personal connection.

8. Start with an action.

Good email subjects often begin with a strong action word. Think “Save” or “Sign up.” These call-to-action subjects tell your readers exactly what you want them to do. If you want more on writing compelling CTAs, check out this post.

9. Avoid all caps and too much punctuation.

All caps and overusing punctuation are two things you should avoid. Nothing looks more sales or spammy than “WANT THIS FOR FREE?!” It’s a turn-off for people and could even trigger spam filters built to filter out emails like that.

10. Don’t overuse emojis.

Emojis are now many we communicate these days so you can try them out in emails. Just don’t go overboard. For example, don’t use more than one and don’t use them to replace words – that can make a message too confusing.

If you’re a Canyon Crest Creative client, you can start emailing with our email marketing solution. Just visit [website], login to your dashboard, and select the My Email Marketing Campaigns tile.

Are you interested in joining the thousands of small business owners growing their businesses online with Canyon Crest Creative? Email social@canyoncrestcreative.com to get started.